מדרש על איוב 3:17

Samuel said: "Whoever makes a vow, although he fulfills it, is to be termed wicked." Said R. Abba: "What is the passage to prove it? (Deut. 23, 23) But if thou forbear to vow, it shall be no sin in thee. We infer through the similar words chadala, chadaly (forbear) it is written here thechdal, and again it is written there (Job 3, 17) There the wicked cease (chadlu) from troubling."

[(Deut. 31:14:) BEHOLD (HN) THE DAYS ARE DRAWING NEAR FOR YOU <TO DIE>. Moses said to the Holy One: Sovereign of the Universe, with the word that I <used to> praise³⁰Cf. Gk.: kalos. you when I said (in Deut. 10:14): BEHOLD (HN) THE HEAVENS <AND THE HEAVENS OF THE HEAVENS, THE EARTH AND ALL THAT IS IN IT> BELONG TO THE LORD YOUR GOD! By that <very word> (i.e., HN) you have condemned me at death.³¹Above, Deut. 2:6; Tanh., Deut. 11:7.: The Holy One said to him: I am bringing about contentment, (as in Deut. 31:16): BEHOLD (HN-) YOU (-K) ARE <SOON> TO SLEEP WITH YOUR ANCESTORS…. R. Abbahu said: The words, BEHOLD YOU (HNK), can only mean contentment, since it is stated (in Job 3:17): THERE (in death) THE WEARY ARE AT REST (yanuhu, understood to have the root HNK).³²Cf. Gen. R. 9:5.

(Deut. 31:14:) “Behold (hn) the days are drawing near for you [to die].” Moses said to the Holy One, blessed be He, “Master of the world, with the word that I [used to] praise²⁸Cf. Gk.: kalos. You when I said (in Deut. 10:14), ‘Behold (hn) the heavens [and the heavens of the heavens, the earth and all that is in it] belong to the Lord your God’; by that [very word] (i.e., hn) you have condemned me to death?”²⁹Above, Deut. 2:6. The Holy One, blessed be He, said to him, “I am bringing you peace of mind, (as in Deut. 31:16), ‘Behold (hn-) you (-k) are [soon] to sleep with your ancestors….’” R. Abbahu said, “The words, behold you (hnk), can only mean peace of mind, since it is stated (in Job 3:17), ‘there (in death) the weary are at rest (yanuhu, understood to have the root hnk).’”³⁰Cf. Gen. R. 9:5. (Deut. 31:14, literally:) “Behold your days are drawing near [to die].” R. Joshua ben Levi said, “A drawing near is uttered with reference to the forefathers, and a drawing near is uttered with reference to the kings (in I Kings 2:1), ‘Then when the days for David to die drew near.’ With reference to the prophets (there is Moses, whom the Holy One, blessed be He, addresses in the second person in Deut. 31:14), ‘Behold your days are drawing near [to die].’” R. Samuel bar Nahmani said, “Do days die? These words are simply a reference to the righteous. When they die, their days pass away from the world, but they themselves remain alive, as stated (in Job 12:10), ‘In whose hand is every living soul.’ If the living are delivered into His hand, are the dead not delivered into His hand? It is simply that these are the righteous, who even in their death are called living.³¹Ber. 18ab. Thus it is stated (in II Sam. 23:20), ‘And Benaiah ben Jehoiada, the son of a valiant warrior (literally, of a living person) from Kazbeel, [who had performed great deeds…].’ And is not everyone [eventually] dead? However, the wicked during their lifetime and in their death are called dead, as stated (in Ezek. 21:30), ‘And you, O slain wicked [prince of Israel, whose day has come…].’” And so it says (in Deut. 17:6), “On the evidence of two or three witnesses shall the dead be put to death.” Does someone dead deserve another death? It is simply that the wicked during life are regarded as dead. Because on seeing the rising sun, such a one does not say the blessing, "blessed be the One who forms light."³²The opening blessing before the morning Shema‘. When it sets, he does not say the blessing, "who brings on evenings."³³The opening blessing before the evening Shema‘. Nor does he say a blessing when eating or drinking. However, the righteous do say a blessing for each and every thing that they eat and drink, and see and hear. Moreover, [these blessings] are uttered not only while they are alive, but even when they are dead. Thus it is stated (in Ps. 149:5-6), “Let the saints rejoice in glory; let them sing for joy upon their beds. With paeans to God in their throats and two-edged swords in their hands.”

... “May the Lord bless you from Zion…” (Psalms 128:5) This comes to teach that the Holy One blesses them from the place that He blesses Israel. And from where do we learn that the blessings come out from Zion? As it says “As the dew of Hermon which runs down on the mountains of Zion…” (Psalms 133:3) and it says “May the Lord bless you from Zion, and see the good of Jerusalem all the days of your life.” (Psalms 128:5) May you merit to see the good of Jerusalem in the time to come, “And may you see children to your children, peace upon Israel.” (Psalms 128:6)

In the Torah of Rabbi Meir they found written 'and behold it was very good' - as 'and behold death was good'. Rabbi Shmuel Bar Nachman said: I was riding on the shoulder of my elder, and he was going from his city to Kfar Chanan through the way of Beit She'an, and I heard Rabbi Shime'on ben Eleazar sitting and explaining in the name of Rabbi Meir: 'and behold it was very good' - as 'and behold death was good.' Rabbi Chama bar Chanina and Rabbi Yonatan [disagree]. Rabbi Chama bar Chanina said: "it would have been proper that the First Adam did not taste the taste of death - and why was he charged with death? One reason: it is written (Ezekiel 28:13) [Ezekiel 28:12 begins: Son of man, take up a lamentation for the king of Tyre, and say to him: Thus says the Lord GOD: Your seal most accurate, full of wisdom, and perfect in beauty] 'you were in the Garden of Eden' - was Chirom in the Garden of Eden? Impossible! Rather, [Ezekiel/Gd] said to him 'you were the one who caused the one in the Garden to die.'" Rabbi Chia, the son of the son of Rabbi Berachia said in the name of Rabbi Berachia 'you were a covering cherub' (Ezekiel 28:14) ['covering' can also be understood as 'washing away'] you were the one who cause that same cherub to die." Rabbi Yonatan said to him: "if that was so, let [God] decree death to the evil ones only, and let Him not decree death on the righteous. But then the evil ones would not repent over their deceptions, and also so that the evil ones wouldn't say 'the only reason the righteous are alive is that they are accostumed to do mitzvot and good deeds, let us be accostumed to do mitzvot and good deeds - and this doing would not be for its own sake. ...